Home Buyers Support Thread Part 3

[juneybean]

Part 2 here -> www.mumsnet.com/Talk/property/a1905904-Buyers-support-thread-part-2?msgid=48420379#48420379

Hope it's okay that I made the next thread :)

Great - place marked

Celtic that's great news, good luck for your exchange!

dotty having read MSE forums they seem to think rising damp doesn't exist... my survey came back saying there was damp in numerous places... there really isn't.

1stMrsF that sounds awfully annoying, it's not like you've changed the date last minute, they knew you couldn't do anything until the 8th.

This is good timing - not seen this thread before.

Am in the process of buying our first home, love the house and desperate to get things moving. Absolute ideal world we would be in before September as I'm a teacher, but looking unlikely.

No chain, which obviously is great. Survey apparently happened on Friday according to the estate agent, but not heard anything yet and not sure how long I should expect to wait before hearing anything?

Vendor won't take it off the market until any survey negotiations are done, but just got this niggling worry that even then he'll want to keep it on. He seems out for everything he can get. Also worried the valuation will come back much lower, as again I don't think he'd be open to much negotiation.

Well done on the new thread juney

Thanks everyone. That's made me feel a lot better! I agree dotty that the whole process seems to bring out the worst in people!

I think that they think I have changed the date (although it's hardly at the last minute, still over 2 weeks to make plans) because they thought that if they kept saying their date over and over again it would just make it the truth IYSWIM.

Thanks juney. 1stMrsF your buyer sounds like they are having a tantrum but surely they won't want To start from scratch? Surely you're in the position of power? Hope it works out for you x

I have chased sols again today - no answer for 4 days now on outstanding enquiries and am getting angsty....4 weeks until completion deadline and I am paranoid something is going wrong.

Anyone for wine?! Oh what's that...more boxes to pack!

How long did it take for your sellers to get a draft contract out to you? We are 6 weeks in and last Tuesday the EA said the contract was 'imminent'. Do I ring up solicitor and agent tomorrow to chase it up and nudge for the contract to be sent out again?

We have done the survey but can't get our searches sent off without the draft contract. Top of the chain is looking at rentals already and then there is just us and our vendors.

Welcome Alice I had my survey/valuation on 9th and mortgage broker confirmed on 10th that mortgage was approved. Received email from surveyor on 14th with survey results.

Thanks juney that's good information to have, I'm aware we've had the weekend so I'll give them a couple of days but then I'll chase it.

Draft contract appeared within about 4 weeks here I think?
Turns out dh had added "rising" to the damp issue. I need to see the report because I've spoken to my dad (who knows about these things) and he thinks dh has got hold of the wrong end if the stick as he says the surveyor told him the damp is in the floors and dad reckons he's never heard that - it's in walls that it's found. Anyway he says not to panic and at most it could be £5-6k for what the surveyor recommended to dh and dad says is unnecessary. It's just more stress, right? Though surely something is to be expected from a survey of a Victorian house!

You could try speaking to the surveyor off the record. The stuff written in mine is worded carefully to protect themselves "there may be..." although with regard to damp on mine they did say something along the lines of damp being in numerous areas, which I think is a load of bullcrap. But yes a 100 year old house isn't going to be perfect on paper.

But I could also be making a huge mistake not checking out my own survey results... but I'm honestly not terribly worried.

MrsF I agree with Fizzie that you have the power. Or you could say you'll agree the 1st if they can fund your movers, storage and a hotel .

I need to book some movers now...

dotty def speak to surveyor in person. We have just sold a Victorian house and there were areas where the walls got damp. The double glazing and blocked up chimneys did not allow it to ventilate as well. We used mould proof paint and a dehumidifier and it honestly was not a big deal. If we were staying we may have done some work on it,but I wouldn't put it in the deal breaker category. Surveys always sound awful. Ours is 41 pages of DOOM but surveyor said basically it's worth the money we are paying and we can afford the work that is really necessary so I don't care.

Lovemypug we had our draft contract within a week. Searches need to go asap, I would kick them up the arse.

I have to say the EAs on my purchase have been useless and done nothing at all to keep things moving. The ones we used for our sale were much more proactive. What's everyone else's experience of EAs? Are they more proactive in London as it's much more competitive or is this just our experience?

I am so fucking pissed off just had a email from my legal people my mortgage offer which has come in the post today has the wrong fucking address on it ffs

Can these people not get their shit together the valuation as the correct address thank good just the other paper work as the old address that pulled out

They clearly have the new address as they sent the sayvour there

We're still ticking along ok. Our vendor's EAs are in the village we're moving to and have been lovely and helpful so far - I wonder if that makes a difference (you're going to be drinking in the same pub and shopping at the same bakery so you have to be nice to people or your business is sunk?).

We're 10 days away from exchanging and think we're on track - all our paperwork signed and in the post to the solicitor, buildings insurance done and got my income protection insurance sorted this morning too.

In terms of EAs, the EA of the house we are buying have been quite proactive. In fact it was them that let me know that a survey was going on, no one else has bothered to tell me!

Can anyone help me with buildings insurance and critical illness cover?? Who do you take these out with and when?? Is it worth me having both done ahead of exchange?

You need buildings insurance to start by the time you exchange - we used Moneysupermarket to find a good deal - ended up with LV.

The Which website is good for explaining the different insurances - we are getting life insurance (individually not joint) and I'm getting Income Protection (rather than critical illness cover) through a company found via compare the market (Exeter Family Friendly). Moneysavingexpert is good at explaining the different types and pros and cons. Critical Illness Cover didn't seem the right choice after reading that advice.

May be worth getting help from a broker?

Sorry - should have said that we're getting the other insurances (life, etc.) before we complete - there's a cooling off period which you can use to cancel it if things fall through with the house. Some insurance requires a medical interview over the phone so that takes a bit longer but for now you could just get the quotes and then apply as soon as you're ready?

Ugh I need to kick some arse tomorrow then...

We have found the sellers agents to be pretty good and proactive. Since we have had the offer accepted they seem to be working for both of us to push the sale through.

Arrgh Is it normal to reach a point where everything seems so precarious?!

We've been under offer on a house since mid May, and secured our buyer mid June (we ditched one buyer as they lost their buyer and we were getting pressure from up the chain to get things going...). We have completed all paperwork and sent back by return but so far no paperwork from vendors via solicitors.

We are doing mortgage through Santander who seem to be notoriously slow generally, but who also seem to struggle with understanding DH's employment situation (tech self employed as salaried partner in an accountancy firm) and they keep coming back asking for more and more info - some of which is available, some is not (due to year end timings)

Our buyer is having their own buildings survey done this week and I am paranoid that they are going to find something terrible.

I am stressed beyond belief worried we won't get the mortgage, worried the survey will pick up something the buyers will either want us to put right before exchange or knock money off what they're offering (we have very little wriggle room to accept less), worried that we are going to lose a fantastic house that is right for us (they only one we've found after 18 months of looking).

I have mentally already moved in I have very comprehensive Pinterest boards with carefully thought out plans for each room FGS and will be so gutted if it doesn't work out.

Tell me I am being irrational and it will all be fine :)

Roger - I completely sympathise. It's a tough old game we're in but we need to remember there are some things we can control and some we can't. No point worrying about mortgage until you have to. I am crossing fingers for you ! And i am totally with you on the Pinterest boards - ridiculous isn't it! I do think visualization can be v handy though in these stressful times! Stay calm and good luck

How long should the solicitors checks take?

Guys I'm one step worse than Pinterest, I've been to ikea :(

I'm trying not to let myself be excited on the one hand, but then on the other, the hard and stressful part of pushing it through hardly seems worth it if you can't be excited about actually moving in.

Anyway we are one step closer. Rang mortgage guy today who has said that the surveyer has confirmed our offer as the value, so thank god for that because we had no more money to fill in a gap.

Have rung EA to let them know, and asked for it to now come off the market. Really hope this is done without argument.

Alice love it! I've discovered you can save shopping lists on the ikea website and I have one called the address of the rental house and one the address of the new house!

Our buyers solicitors were back on the case today, insisting on a completion date of 1 August. Quote 'We have been informed that your clients have been made aware of this date by estate agents'. Yes, I've had it rammed down my bloody throat, but at no time have I said yes to it. My sol has suggested ignoring them as the longer we delay the more likely it is that they will have to fall into line and go with 8 Aug!! So we are playing a waiting game. [anxious]